A Lost Hope

"Luke! Luke!" Owen had called for the boy repeatedly. Where could he have gone? The old man thought to himself as he called out for Luke. As he walked into the garage, he found nothing but the two droids that Luke had said he was taking to get memory wipes—Luke had said he was taking them to get memory wipes!

What in the blazes are they doing here then? He wondered. He looked around and walked over to the droids when the blue one—R2-D2—began to shake and twitter and beep. "What's the matter with you?" He asked the bucket of bolts.

"Excuse me, Master Owen," the golden one began—obviously it had awoken--, "but R2 is complaining that he is the property of an 'Obi-wan Kenobi.' I'm dreadfully sorry; he has been like this for some time. Is this name familiar to you?"

"Damned Jedi," Owen began to mutter under his breath as it suddenly became clear to him. Obi-wan must have taken the boy when Luke hadn't expected it! Damnable Jedi tricks. He looked at the droids and motioned for them to come as he left the room, grabbing his old blaster rifle.

Beru had bumped into him to see that Owen was obviously upset. "What's wrong?" She asked him carefully, as she noticed her husband slinging an old, but serviceable blaster rifle across his shoulders.

"It's that damned Kenobi, Beru!" He yelled, not realizing how loud he was until he noticed Beru visibly wincing. "I-I'm sorry, Beru," he said softly. "It's just that Luke is missing and the droids are here—which is not supposed to happen," he explained. "The boy told me he was taking them to Anchor—oh no," he said as the truth began to set in. Biggs was back from the Academy and Luke had been forced to stay on Tatooine. No, he thought to himself. He couldn't have run off with Biggs, he wouldn't leave us just like this. Not without telling us.

And then he remembered how jittery Luke had been earlier during the day.

"Owen?" Beru called to him, as he realized that his eyes had lost focus and shifted elsewhere.

"Let's go to Luke's room. He's got to be there," Owen said, hoping that he was right.

As they entered the dark, surprisingly clean room, they noticed a red flashing signal on the round holoprojector that sat in the center of Luke's bedroom.

Owen walked up to it and pressed the flashing key, triggering a blue-hued image of a young man dressed in a grey jumpsuit. It was none other than Luke.

"Uncle Owen, Aunt Beru, I know by now you must be wondering where I am. I am sorry, but I don't have a lot of time. I've gone to the Academy, without your permission. I couldn't stay here any longer. I just don't have it in me to become a moisture farmer like you, Uncle Owen. I had to leave the planet—to find my destiny and to truly find what I am looking for. Staying here," Luke gestured, "would do me no good. I hope you understand, and I hope that in time, I can come back and we can talk. But for now, please, let me find my own destiny. I will love you always." The image faded as Owen and Beru stood there, dumbfounded and heart-broken. Luke had run off to the Empire.

"Owen! What are we going to do? Luke's gone to the Empire!" She sobbed on her husband's shoulder as he found himself staring at the holoprojector.

"We better take these droids and go to Kenobi. He'll know what to do," Owen said with much resignation. Luke couldn't have been that impulsive. What will happen if the Emperor gets his hands on the boy? He's just a kid. No, he's my nephew and a Skywalker.

They left with much haste as they sped away from their home in the black angular SoroSuub V-35 speeder. The fate of the Galaxy seemed to weigh heavily on their shoulders.

He had walked out of his hut, eager to leave behind the sorrows of time past and to stretch his feet. Obi-wan was still dressed in his comfortable Jedi robes and much to his surprise, a black angular speeder stopped in front of him, seating none other than the Lars couple.

I wonder what they might want, he thought to himself as he noticed two droids that bore an odd resemblance to two others from time past. Droids? One reminds me of C-3PO and R2-D— blast.

"Obi-wan," Owen started as he leapt off his speeder. "We need to talk."

"So it would appear," he nodded twice as his eyes never left the pair of droids. "Come," he said, "it would be better if we spoke inside."

As the group made their way into the modest hut, made up of no more than necessary furnishings one would need in a shelter, Obi-wan urged his companions to sit down. "So," he said after a moment of silence, "what can I do for you?"

Owen looked at the older Jedi Master. "I'll come straight to the point: Luke's joined the Empire."

This caused the Jedi to shift uncomfortably. "Joined the Empire? How could that have happened?"

Now it was Owen's turn to shift uncomfortably. "I, uh, he told me that he went to go have the droids' memories wiped. That was the last I saw of him."

"Then Luke is in clear danger and I must leave quickly," Obi-wan said as his eyes shifted towards the droids. Why are these two here?

Anticipating the question, Owen pointed to the droids and said, "these are our new acquisitions. This little one claims to be yours."

"Mine? I don't recall ever owning a droid."

R2 shook and whistled, protesting the Jedi's remark.

"Master Kenobi," the golden droid started, forcing everyone to gaze at the droid, "my companion says that there is an urgent message for you."

"Very well," Obi-wan said reluctantly.

Suddenly R2 began to switch to several tones and beeps before a holoprojector displayed a blue-hued portrait of a woman in white, with dark hair and who had a tone of desperation in her voice. Her soft features seemed to remind the Jedi and the couple of another political figure who had stood for something so long ago.

"General Kenobi," the image started, "my name is Princess Leia Organa of the planet Alderaan. Years ago, you served my father during the Clone Wars. I ask of you that you help us now. Our time has grown short and you must deliver a message within this R2 to my father. Please help me Obi-wan Kenobi, you're my only hope." The image faded shortly thereafter.

After a few more moments, Obi-wan nodded. Something had truly gone wrong and now it seemed he more than a great weight on his shoulders. And Luke was not around. He turned to the couple and said softly, "I think it is time things were sorted out. I must leave for Alderaan immediately and hopefully, I will be able to find Luke."

"How will you find him?" Beru asked the old Master desperately between sobs.

"I will find a way." He steeled himself for the possibility of confronting the Emperor—or worse: Vader. He knew the Force would have inexorably push himself into battle with the Dark Lords of the Sith. The Jedi Master only hoped he had the strength and spirit within him to hold his own against the pair. 20 years had done a lot to allow guilt to wither away at the defenses of the old man.

Beru and Owen began to leave the hut, somberly boarding their speeder as Obi-wan walked with them.

"Obi-wan," Owen began, his voice wavering as he couldn't help but think of terrible things happening to Luke, "I-I owe you an apology."

"You owe me nothing, Owen," the Jedi Master calmly assured the farmer. "And let us hope that you will have nothing to apologize for. Only the Force can tell us whether or not Luke will go unnoticed by the Emperor for now."

Shortly after the Lars' couple had left—minus the droids—he walked towards a rectangular chest in his room. Opening it, he found a cylindrical object that seemed very much like his own—however this lightsaber was more generic in its shape and its emitter was covered at an angle.

He lifted the pommel up and rested his thumb on the activation plate and heard the familiar snap-hiss of the blade as it flared to life—thrumming a sky-blue glow. Removing his thumb from the plate, the lightsaber flickered away, as the hilt found itself clipped to the other side of his belt.

Obi-wan then continued to peruse through his chest as he found a flattened disc-shaped object that he picked up into his hand. He tapped a button and after a few moments, he saw a pint-sized shape of a human male, who appeared much older than the Jedi Master.

"Senator Organa," Obi-wan began, "I have some troubling news."

"Obi-wan? So you've heard?"

"Heard?"

Bail Organa's voice seemed to border on hysteria as he said a handful of words that came crashing down on Obi-wan. "Leia's been arrested and charged with treason by the Empire!"

Obi-wan's worst fears were realized: the Empire had the last hope of the Galaxy in its very grasp.